Echo Park Film Center: Transgender Short Films

Catch several of the short films from the first two TG Film Fests, a festival devoted exclusively to work made by members of the “trans” community. The films range from comedies to dramas to documentaries to genre-bending experiments.

The festival is an extension of Trans/Giving, an organization here in Los Angeles that hosts performances and art shows featuring work trans community people, “trans” meaning in the words of Trans/Giving: “transgender, transsexual, transvestite, as in crossdressers, drag kings and queens, studs, and all those who identify as contributing members of gender fabulousness.”

Work showcased by Trans/Giving doesn’t necessarily mean that it has to deal specifically with gender issues, just as long as it was created by someone in the community. The film festival is already accepting entries for their 2011 edition, so if you want to submit, go check that out.

In regards to this specific event, the full lineup of films hasn’t been released, but the few films that have been listed do indeed deal with gender issues. I’ve listed those films below with descriptions that have been taken directly from the TG Film Fest website (where I could find them):

The Bath, dir. Lee Mi-Rang (20 mins, Korean, subtitled)
A trans woman reluctantly goes to the baths with her sister for the first time, leading to a transformation for her entire family.

Transproofed, dir. Andrea James and Calpernia Addams (14 mins)
A comedy that explores the controversy of when (or whether) to come out as transgender in a romantic relationship.